Mother Nature decimates postseason schedule

Sports

Mother Nature decimates postseason schedule

A weekend that was supposed to crown conference champions in Nordic and Alpine skiing, another round of Southwesterns winners in swimming and produce a round of girls' hockey playoffs, instead turned into a washout.

Falmouth freshman diver Charlotte Janelle won the 11-dive North division Southwesterns diving title last week. Janelle tallied a score of 299, which was higher than even the top boys' diver. Janelle previously qualified for nationals at her first AAU meet this season, at the ZAP Diving Invitational, in Sudbury, Mass., in October.

Photo: Jason Veilleux / For The Forecaster

Greely junior Sarah Kurland is denied by Brunswick goalie Claire Mendes, who made 50 saves, during the Rangers' 5-1 East Region semifinal round playoff win Monday night. Kurland did have a goal to help Greely take another step toward a repeat title.

The record-setting snow that swept the region Friday and Saturday erased the high school sports slate in the process, frustrating schedule-makers.

The Southwestern swim meet, which included Falmouth and Greely and was scheduled for Friday (boys) and Saturday (girls) in Westbrook, was postponed to Monday (boys) and Tuesday (girls).

In the boys' competition, won by Cheverus with 327 points, Greely (219) placed second and Falmouth (122) was sixth.

The Rangers got wins from Jon Dunnett in the 100 butterfly (54.78 seconds) and the 100 breaststroke (1 minute, 2.88 seconds). Greely was runner-up in the medley relay (1:46.83).

"We swam well, but Cheverus is so deep," said longtime Greely coach Rob Hale. "We just couldn't match up with their third swimmer. Their third swimmer was scoring in the top six or seven. That is seven or nine points, and over 12 events, that adds up. It also makes their relays so much stronger. Jonathan Dunnett and Griffin Fluet (third in the breaststroke, 1:05.73; fifth in the fly, 57.97) were our swimmers of the meet. They popped off some pretty impressive performances."

The Yachtsmen were led by Jake Perron, who won the 200 free (1:49.82) and the 500 free (4:46.71). Shaun Lamoureux was runner-up in the 100 free (50.73).

We'll recap the girls' meet in next week's edition.

The state meets will be held Monday (boys) and Tuesday (girls) at the University of Maine in Orono.

Local indoor track powers were scheduled to vie for Western Maine Conference championship glory Friday, but that meet was moved to Monday at the University of Southern Maine in Gorham.

The Yachtsmen got a win from its senior relay (1:54.47). Madeline Roberts was runner-up in the two-mile (12:02.07). Sarah Sparks finished second in the senior 400 (1:03.99). Charlotte Cutshall was second in the senior 55 (7.71). Kiersten Dyhrberg was runner-up in the junior shot put (28-4). Alexa Hoffman was second in the junior 400 (1:06.42).

The Western Maine Conference Nordic championships began last Wednesday with the skate race. Yarmouth (24 points) was the boys' winner. Clipper Braden Becker was the individual runner-up with a time of 15 minutes, 4.1 seconds. Merriconeag (35), paced by Jack Pierce (third, 15:14.4), was runner-up. Falmouth (53), led by Jay Lesser (fifth, 15:24.3), placed third. Freeport (87), paced by Forest McCurdy (sixth, 15:56.6), was fifth and Greely (119), which featured Doug Mitiguy (22nd, 17:46), came in seventh.

Merriconeag was tops on the girls' side with 22 points, six better than runner-up Yarmouth. Freeport (53) came in third, Falmouth (58) was fourth and Greely (161) placed eighth. Individually, Merrriconeag had the top two finishers, Zoe Chace-Donahue (18:01.4) and Emilie Chace-Donahue (18:08.8). The Clippers were led by Sarah Becker (fourth, 18:14.4). The top Falcon was Elizabeth Martin (third, 18:11.5). The Yachtsmen featured Dana Bloch (11th, 19:52.4). The Rangers were paced by Emily Follett (35th, 24:39.2).

The Classic race, scheduled for Saturday, was moved to Monday, then another bout of snow pushed it to Tuesday at Stark's Hill in Fryeburg. We'll update that result next week.

The WMC Alpine championships were held last week. The Falmouth boys dominated, tallying 49 points to easily defeat Cape Elizabeth and Yarmouth, who tied for second with 103. Greely (138) was fourth and Freeport (139) came in fifth. The Yachtsmen were paced by Devereux Thomas (winner of the slalom with a two-run combined time of 1 minute, 20.31 seconds). Alexander Gowen was runner-up in the slalom (1:21.41) and the giant slalom (1:18.19). Joseph Lesniak (fourth in the GS 1:18.85, eighth in the slalom, 1:26.18) and Cooper Lycan (seventh in the slalom, 1:26.04) also scored. The Rangers were led by Sam Perlmutter (third in the slalom, 1:21.79; third in the GS, 1:18.33). The Clippers' top scorer was Matthew Highland (fourth in the slalom, 1:24.2; sixth in the GS, 1:19.81). The Falcons were paced by Ryder Bennell (seventh in the GS, 1:19.91) and Blake Enrico (ninth in the slalom, 1:27.29).

On the girls' side, Greely won easily with 40 points. Yarmouth (130) came in third, Falmouth (132) was fourth and Freeport (148) placed fifth. The Rangers were led by Elyse Dinan who won the slalom in 1:28.52 and the GS 1:22.53. Jordan Ouellette (second in the slalom, 1:32.28; eighth in the GS, 1:29.8), Kelsey Otley (third in the GS, 1:25.56), Teal Otley (third in the slalom, 1:32.39) and Jill Booth (sixth in the slalom, 1:33.41; 16th in the GS, 1:33.17) were the other scorers. The Clippers were led by Chapin Dorsett (sixth in the GS, 1:28.47; eighth in the slalom, 1:34.54). The top Yachtsmen was Alex Shapiro (runner-up in the GS, 1:22.86; seventh in the slalom, 1:33.45). The Falcons featured Taylor Enrico (fifth in the slalom, 1;32.87; seventh in the GS, 1:28.81).

The ski state meets are the week of Feb. 18.

In girls' hockey, Falmouth and Greely had to wait to begin their title quests.

The defending state champion Rangers, the top seed in the East Region, were supposed to host No. 5 Brunswick Saturday, but that game was moved to Monday, where Greely took care of business, 5-1. Maura Verrill gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead just over five minutes in, but despite ample opportunities, the hosts couldn't add to it until Paige Tuller scored on the power play early in the second period. Meg Finlay added another in the stanza to make it 3-0. After the Dragons got on the board with a power play goal early in the third, Sarah Kurland and Mary Morrison lit the lamp to slam the door. The Rangers ended with an emphatic 55-7 edge in shots.

"It would have been nice to score more, but (Brunswick's Claire Mendes, 50 saves) is a very good goalie," said Greely coach Nate Guerin. "We controlled big chunks of the game."

The Rangers (16-2-1) next faced Leavitt/EL in the East Region Final Wednesday.

"It will be tough," Guerin. "We it expect it to be a close one. We look forward to a great night of hockey. We're excited to be part of it. Last year's experience is huge. The seniors are more focused and determined, which is awesome to see. They're a strong group of leaders."

A victory would send Greely back to the state final to play either Scarborough or York Saturday at 7 p.m., at the Colisee in Lewiston.

In the West Region, No. 3 Falmouth was supposed to play at No. 2 York Saturday, but that game was moved to Monday afternoon where the Yachtsmen fell, 3-2, as their season ended at 11-8. Camden Carrier and Abby Payson had the goals.

The state championship game is Saturday at the Colisee in Lewiston.

Boys' hockey is the lone sport still playing its regular season, but that will be over by this time next week.

Defending Class B state champion Greely improved to 10-4 last Thursday with a 5-4 come-from-behind home win over Cape Elizabeth. Aidan Black had two goals, including the go-ahead tally. The Rangers were supposed to host Camden Hills in a showdown for the top spot in the Heals Monday night, but poor travel conditions kept the Windjammers home and rescheduled the game for Tuesday afternoon (see theforecaster.net for game story).

Greely (second in the standings) played a makeup game at Leavitt Wednesday, goes to Camden Hills Friday and closes the regular season Wednesday of next week at Yarmouth. Greely junior Ted Hart was named January Forward of the Month by the Western B Coaches' Association after scoring 14 goals and adding eight assists in six games.

The Clippers are up to third in the Heals and improved to 6-7-2 with a 5-1 victory at Kennebunk Monday. Yarmouth was home with Portland Tuesday, goes to Gardiner Saturday, then closes against Greely. Junior Max Watson was named Defenseman of the Month for January after scoring two goals and adding six assists.

In Western A, Falmouth is second behind Scarborough. The teams were supposed to have a showdown Saturday night in Falmouth, but the game was postponed by snow. No makeup date had been announced by press time. Monday, the Yachtsmen improved to 12-2 with a 5-0 home victory over Biddeford. Falmouth is at Cheverus Thursday, goes to St. Dom's Saturday and closes the regular season at home against two-time defending Class A state champion Thornton Academy Feb. 21.